A Super Sturgeon moon will rise on August 1st.
The full moon in August is historically called the Sturgeon Moon, named after North America’s largest fish, the lake sturgeon. This is because the full moon’s rising coincides with an abundance of sturgeon caught in North America’s Great Lakes.
According to the Farmers’ Almanac, it is also known by different nicknames in different cultures, such as Flying Up Moon (Cree), Corn Moon (Algonquin, Ojibwe), Harvest Moon (Dakota), Black Cherries Moon (Assiniboine), and Ricing Moon (Anishinaabe).
Supermoons are called so because they occur when the Moon is nearest to the Earth, which makes them larger and brighter when viewed from Earth.
The first August full moon is a supermoon because it is within the definition of 90% of the perigee position (varies from 356,355 to 370,399 km). In a typical year, there will be 2 to 3 supermoons (4 in 2023).
On August 1st at 2:32 p.m. (ET), the moon will be 357,530 kilometres away from the Earth. August 1st Supermoon will be followed by August 31st Super Blue Moon. The blue moon (the second full moon of the month) will be closer than the August 1st Sturgeon moon and it will be at a distance of 357,344 kilometres.
During supermoons, the moon will appear only about 14% bigger and 30% brighter (i.e., an increase in the moon’s illuminance by 0.28 magnitude) than when it is at the farthest point. This difference is hardly perceptible to the human eye, so the moon will look pretty much like any other full moon, except that you know it is a Super Sturgeon moon!
August is also the month when the annual Perseid Meteor shower makes its appearance. This year, the showers will peak between midnight and dawn on the morning of August 11 to 13.
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HOW & WHEN TO WATCH:
The moon’s illumination will be at its peak on the night of August 1st. However, to the casual stargazer, the moon will appear equally full the night before and after its peak.
To glimpse this spectacular moon, look towards the southeastern sky after sunset on August 1st. The moon will rise at 9:14 pm EDT and set at 6:49 am EDT on August 2.
If you are in Manitoba, you can head to Dominion City to take a picture of the Sturgeon moon against the world’s largest sturgeon (roadside attraction).